Papers by Lawrence Besserman
Description of MS Harley 2252 and first-time publication of its shorter poems.
Survey of modern English merisms, the lexical pattern of polar opposites forming an idiom of incl... more Survey of modern English merisms, the lexical pattern of polar opposites forming an idiom of inclusion, e.g., "[from] x . . . [to] y": 'day and night', 'tall and short,' etc.
On the use of polar expressions such as "day and night," "old and young," etc. in Middle English ... more On the use of polar expressions such as "day and night," "old and young," etc. in Middle English poetry --the rhetorical device known as <merismus> in biblical and classical scholarship.
Explores Chaucer's serious and light-hearted uses of the Bible in the <Merchant's Tale>
Chaucer's overlooked obliquely jocular allusions to the Great Schism in the <General Prologue> an... more Chaucer's overlooked obliquely jocular allusions to the Great Schism in the <General Prologue> and in <Troilus and Criseyde> reveal another facet of his passionate engagement with the religious culture of his day.
On the difficult reading 'grisly'?
Chaucer's Pardoner in the context of 14th c. religious developments--Wyclif, etc.
Chaucer's participation in the debate about literal versus figurative biblical interpretation is ... more Chaucer's participation in the debate about literal versus figurative biblical interpretation is seen in several of the Canterebury Tales, most notably the Wife of Bath's Prologue and the Merchant's Tale.
Who wears them, who doesn't, and why.
Israeli-Palestinian relations; The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
On the variety of subtle and learned ways that Chaucer uses the Bible in the <Pardoner's Tale> to... more On the variety of subtle and learned ways that Chaucer uses the Bible in the <Pardoner's Tale> to achieve engaging literary effects.
Critique of Thomas Friedman's proposals for peace between Israel and her Arab enemies.
Israeli Palestinian relations, integration, Zionism
Ovid and Lamentations behind a famous passage in T&C
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Papers by Lawrence Besserman